Ohio should update its bail system to be risk-based, not profit-based

Comment

The Repository

Writer

Posted Aug. 13, 2014 at 12:00 PM
Updated Aug 13, 2014 at 11:57 PM

Posted Aug. 13, 2014 at 12:00 PM
Updated Aug 13, 2014 at 11:57 PM

While visiting Canton for my Central Catholic High School reunion, I was discouraged to learn about the legal battles concerning Ohio’s bail system (“Posting bail just got easier in Ohio,” Aug. 6). It seems that while Ohioans have been arguing in court whether bail bondsmen have the right to earn a profit on every criminal arrest, most of the country has been moving toward a system of pretrial justice that actually works.

Ohio’s antiquated, discriminatory and dangerous bail practices are a drain on my home state’s public treasuries and are a threat to the safety of my nieces and nephew. The release of a criminal defendant should not be based upon whether they can raise a specified amount of cash but rather upon their likelihood to stay out of trouble and return to court as required. Courts across America are now using validated risk assessment tools to help them decide who can safely be released pending their trial and under what terms of accountable supervision, not the sale of an insurance policy. This risk-based approach to pretrial justice is focused on fairness and public safety, not profit. It’s time for Ohio to discard its current “buy your way out of jail” system and the silly arguments that go with it. Research shows we can do better, and I’d be happy to work with local policy makers to design a system that works and costs less.